A decade of life lessons 
When the Community Service Order (CSO) was launched 10 years ago as a condition of probation for juvenile offenders, probationers were made to perform work such as cleaning and cooking for the old and the young, and painting walls.
Now, the scope of activities has been expanded to caring for and befriending the elderly and disabled, organising fundraising and social programmes for the disadvantaged, and setting up camps for primary school kids.
This change is not only due to the shift of focus from punishment to imparting of life skills, but also due to the variety and number of agencies that have come on board the CSO programme. The scheme now involves 128 agencies compared to only 10 a decade ago.
However, Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon says this figure is not enough. It is only a small percentage of the 1,700 Institutions of Public Characters in the country.
As the CSO celebrated its 10th anniversary yesterday, she called for more "mainstream" agencies to step forward and be part of the programme. Instead of just the charities and community services, she wants the youth movement, arts councils, and schools to open their doors to these probationers too.
Said Mrs Yu-Foo: "The key is to give them a role to play and a chance to see their self-worth and develop their confidence ... The community must give offenders a second chance by taking ownership of helping the youth to become socially responsible citizens."
Indeed, studies carried out by the MCYS in three-year cycles show the success of the CSO programme. The study conducted last year found that nine out of 10 probationers who passed the CSO in 2002 stayed crime-free for three years.
Mrs Yu-Foo also stressed that agencies have much to gain from joining the programme. Agencies should see the probationers as partners and get them involved, she said.
The Salvation Army's Peacehaven Home executive director Captain Ian Robinson agrees. At his home, probationers have adopted some of the elderly residents. Every Saturday, they would spend time with these residents, play games or sing karaoke to them. Even after passing the CSO, about four to five signed on with the Home to pay weekly visits to their adopted seniors.
"The probationers bring life to them," said Captain Robinson. "Many of our elderly have few or infrequent visitors. It makes a big difference to them to see young people coming back week after week. They respond to the energy of the youth." - TODAY/sh
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A decade of life lessons 
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